"I've turned the page on wilder days," the chorus of "Better Me" goes. "I'm writing all this down, hopin' you'll see / I ain't sayin' I'm perfect, but I'm workin' on a better me."

The helicopter crash that killed Gentry took place in Medford, N.J. He and duo partner Eddie Montgomery were scheduled to perform there that evening.

Country Artists Remember Troy Gentry

“Not long after takeoff, the pilot announced over the airport frequency — which was being monitored by a number of people — that he was having difficulty controlling engine RPM,” Brian Rayner, senior air safety investigator with the NTSB, explains. “A couple of different responses to that challenge were discussed, and he was performing an auto rotational descent … The helicopter landed short of the runway in low brush, it was substantially damaged, and the occupants were fatally injured.”

Gentry was removed from the wreckage at the scene but was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. In addition to Gentry, the helicopter’s pilot, James Evan Robinson, died in the crash; crews worked for hours to remove his body from the wreck.

“Known for his wide smile, Gentry was personally driven by faith, family and living life to the fullest,” Gentry’s official obituary reads. “One of his favorite Bible verses was Deuteronomy 31:6, which says, ‘Be strong and courageous; don’t be terrified or afraid of them. For it is the Lord your God who goes with you; He will not leave you or forsake you.’”